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Compare Paracel Islands (2006) - British Virgin Islands (2007)
Compare Paracel Islands (2006) z British Virgin Islands (2007)
| Paracel Islands (2006) | British Virgin Islands (2007) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 20.2% (male 2,410/female 2,337)
15-64 years: 74.5% (male 9,004/female 8,534) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 665/female 602) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | - | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish |
| Airports | 1 (2006) | 3 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
| Area | total: NA sq km
land: NA sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke |
| Area - comparative | NA | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC |
| Background | The Paracel Islands are surrounded by productive fishing grounds and by potential oil and gas reserves. In 1932, French Indochina annexed the islands and set up a weather station on Pattle Island; maintenance was continued by its successor, Vietnam. China has occupied the Paracel Islands since 1974, when its troops seized a South Vietnamese garrison occupying the western islands. The islands are claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam. | First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. |
| Birth rate | - | 14.82 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | - | revenues: $204.7 million
expenditures: $180.4 million (2004) |
| Capital | - | name: Road Town
geographic coordinates: 18 27 N, 64 37 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | tropical | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds |
| Coastline | 518 km | 80 km |
| Constitution | - | 13 June 2007 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Paracel Islands |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
| Death rate | - | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | - | $36.1 million (1997) |
| Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Disputes - international | occupied by China, also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
| Economy - overview | China announced plans in 1997 to open the islands for tourism. | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 820,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2005. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar as its currency since 1959. |
| Electricity - consumption | - | 41.85 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production | - | 45 million kWh (2005) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Rocky Island 14 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
| Environment - current issues | NA | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) |
| Ethnic groups | - | black 83%, other 17% (includes white, Indian, Asian and mixed) |
| Exchange rates | - | the US dollar is used |
| Executive branch | - | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006)
head of government: Premier Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 23 August 2007) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the House of Assembly elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed premier by the governor |
| Exports | - | NA bbl/day |
| Exports - commodities | - | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand |
| Exports - partners | - | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006) |
| Fiscal year | - | 1 April - 31 March |
| Flag description | - | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) |
| GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | - | 1% (2002 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 16 30 N, 112 00 E | 18 30 N, 64 30 W |
| Geography - note | composed of 130 small coral islands and reefs divided into the northeast Amphitrite Group and the western Crescent Group | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering |
| Imports | - | NA bbl/day |
| Imports - commodities | - | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery |
| Imports - partners | - | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006) |
| Independence | - | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
| Industries | - | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center |
| Infant mortality rate | - | total: 16.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 2% (2005) |
| International organization participation | - | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU |
| Irrigated land | 0 sq km | NA |
| Judicial branch | - | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction |
| Labor force | - | 12,770 (2004) |
| Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture: 0.6%
industry: 40% services: 59.4% (2005) |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
| Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2005) |
| Languages | - | English (official) |
| Legal system | - | English law |
| Legislative branch | - | unicameral House of Assembly (13 elected seats and 1 non-voting ex officio member in the attorney general; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - VIP 45.2%, NDP 39.6%, independent 15.2%; seats by party - VIP 10, NDP 2, independent 1 |
| Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 76.86 years
male: 75.71 years female: 78.07 years (2007 est.) |
| Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, group of small islands and reefs in the South China Sea, about one-third of the way from central Vietnam to the northern Philippines | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Maritime claims | NA | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
| Military - note | occupied by China | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
| National holiday | - | Territory Day, 1 July (1956) |
| Nationality | - | noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
| Natural hazards | typhoons | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) |
| Natural resources | none | NEGL |
| Net migration rate | - | 8.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | - | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
| Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: there are scattered Chinese garrisons |
23,552 (July 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
| Population growth rate | - | 1.923% (2007 est.) |
| Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004) |
| Religions | - | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, other 2%, none 2% (1991) |
| Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.031 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.055 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.105 male(s)/female total population: 1.053 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | - | general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; connected via submarine cable to Bermuda; the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2007) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | - | 11,700 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 8,000 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | - | 1 (plus 1 cable company) (1997) |
| Terrain | mostly low and flat | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly |
| Total fertility rate | - | 1.72 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | - | 3.6% (1997) |
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